1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a waste collection system for collecting wastes generated in a building at a predetermined position. More specifically, this invention is concerned with a waste collection system for automatically moving the waste generated in a building such as a condominium building, a hospital, or an office building and are thrown into input ports situated at various places in the building, through a predetermined conveyance path, and accumulated at a predetermined collection point.
2. Background Art
Heretofore, the waste generated in a building such as a condominium has been kept in plastic bags or baskets by the residents of the building, and on the waste collecting day, the waste was manhandled to the waste accumulation area downstairs. Or, an apparatus called a dust chute may have been provided. The dust chute is provided to vertically penetrate the building, having holes in the longitudinal direction thereof, namely having an input port at every floor. When the dust chute is employed, as described above, the waste, which has been stored in the plastic bag, a basket or the like by each resident, is deposited into the dust chute. The waste falls downstairs and is accumulated thereat.
However, the waste collection system of conventional type mentioned above has following drawbacks.
(1) It is not desirable to keep the waste in the room for the reasons of tidyness and sanitation since demands for maintaining a comfortable living space have increased. In other words, contamination due to decomposition or an offensive smell may be generated.
(2) Since the date and hour when the residents can take the wastes outside are limited, the residents have to keep the waste in their rooms. Hence, a limitation is imposed on the space in the room in order to secure space for the waste.
(3) The date and hour for waste collection are limited, so that residents can deposit the waste only at such time, which is inconvenient.
(4) The waste accumulation area is generally close to the entrance of the building to provide easy access for a waste collection vehicle. However, if a waste collection place is where there is a lot of traffic, the waste contained in the bags are likely to be dispersed, which is neither sanitary nor tidy.
(5) Especially for those who live in a multistoried building, there is a long distance between the rooms and the waste collection point and carrying the waste requires much labor.
According to a second conventional method, i.e., when the dust chute is employed, there are also the following problems.
(1) The waste is likely to disperse inside the dust chute or the accumulation area downstairs, which becomes a cause of contamination.
(2) Since the dust chute is a device for letting waste fall vertically, if the plane of the building is large, quite a few dust chutes are required. Namely, the waste collection operation is troublesome since the waste is picked up at the bottom of each dust chute, especially when the floor area of the building is large.
(3) Noise produced by the wastes falling through the dust chute is also a problem.